Los Angeles Kings Tickets

The Kings were part of the first group of expansion teams that joined the NHL in 1967. In the Kings’ early years, they wore purple and gold like the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers. The purple-and-gold era Kings frequently qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but they were often eliminated in the first or second round. The most famous King of this era was Marcel Dionne, who scored at least 50 goals in five consecutive seasons between 1978-79 and 1982-83. He frequently played on what became known as the Triple Crown Line with Charlie Simmer and Dave Taylor. Both Taylor and Dionne have had their numbers retired by the team.

Before the 1988-89 season, the Kings made one of the most significant trades in the history of the NHL: they acquired Wayne Gretzky, who had just won the Stanley Cup with the Edmonton Oilers and was the best player in the world. Gretzky’s arrival in California changed everything for the Kings and for the sport of hockey in general. Suddenly, celebrities were appearing rinkside at Kings games the way they’d been appearing courtside to see the Lakers. Gretzky made hockey cool. Teams in markets like Anaheim, San Jose, and Florida likely wouldn’t exist if Gretzky had not come to LA.

The Kings updated their uniform colors to silver and black to correspond with Gretzky’s arrival. The new-look team made it to the playoffs in each of Gretzky’s first six years in LA and made it to the Stanley Cup Final once, in 1993, but were defeated by the Montreal Canadiens.

After the Gretzky era came to an end, the Kings struggled. They missed the playoffs from 2003 to 2009 and often finished last in their division. Things started to turn around by 2010, however, when the Kings were able to assemble a roster that included future Norris Trophy (awarded to the league’s best defenseman) winner Drew Doughty, future Vezina Trophy (best goalie) winner Jonathan Quick, and future Selke Trophy (best defensive forward) winner Anze Kopitar. By 2012, the Kings had added Mike Richards, Jeff Carter, and Justin Williams, and the team finally won its first Stanley Cup, defeating the New Jersey Devils in the final round. In 2014, the Kings won their second Stanley Cup and cemented themselves as one of the top teams of the decade.